Leonardo the Florentine by Catherine McGrew Jaime

Title: Leonardo the Florentine

Author: Catherine McGrew Jaime

Publisher: Creative Learning Connection

Published: Oct 2010

ISBN: 978-1453889909

Rating 5/5 

The cover on this illustrates something which represents Leonardo extremely well.  I really enjoyed reading this. 

Leonardo the Florentine is a book of historical fiction, however most of it is based on facts with artistic license used.  The storyline interweaves Leonardo's life and the politics of his time, along with a story showing Leonardo working alongside Master Verrocchio during his early years.

I felt I learnt a lot from this book, even though it's fiction, it still has elements of fact within the pages.  It has a lot of info within the 150 odd pages.  As a family we love books like this, and are big fans of The Magic Tree House series of books.  Although there's no magic involved in this book, the intermingling of fiction and fact is fascinating and makes for an entertaining and educational read.

This is a fantastic family friendly book, with enough information in here for most people.  It would be a brilliant starter as a unit study for home educators,  as a story to read alongside learning about Leonardo and his early years, or just for fun, as I think there's something in it for most people....an assassination plot, family, friendship and history.

Book Synopsis:

Who are the Medici brothers? And who is trying to assassinate them? Why was the Pitti Palace never completed? And what part does Leonardo play in all of this?

Leonardo da Vinci is remembered as an artist and inventor. But who was he before anyone knew his name? This family-friendly novel explores the history and legends of his early years in Florence. It also weaves a mystery of politics and power.

Source: A copy was received in exchange for an honest review.